Protein film actor Craig Russell ‘lucky’ to see film after brain tumour

A Welsh actor has said there was “a very real chance” he would not see his latest film finished after he was diagnosed with a brain tumour following filming.

Craig Russell, who grew up in Cwmtwrch in the Swansea Valley, said in hindsight he realised he experienced symptoms of the tumour while the thriller, Protein, was in production.

“A couple of weird things happened, I was walking into stuff, I was getting lost in our own house,” he recalled.

The film, which tells the story of a gym-obsessed serial killer who murders and eats a local drug dealer for their protein, inadvertently sparking a turf-war between rival drugs gangs, was shot in south and west Wales following Russell’s suggestion.

He told writer and director Tony Burke there was “nowhere like Wales” for talent, “both in front of and behind the camera, scenery, everything you might need”.

“He took my advice and luckily it paid off,” he said speaking to Lucy Owen on BBC Radio Wales.

“As he says himself now, ‘Wales is the most important character in the movie’.”

Russell admits “self-preservation” led him to downplaying the initial symptoms of his tumour.

“The back of my head started really hurting,” he said.

“I hadn’t even realised I was losing the sight of my left eye, the hearing in my left ear.”

His wife Kate persuaded him to go to see a GP, and an MRI scan revealed a brain tumour that had been growing for about 15 years.

Three days later, Russell had a seven-hour surgery to remove it and was told he “might not survive”.

The back of his skull was taken away and then rebuilt after surgeons removed the tumour.

“The NHS are brilliant, aren’t they? They saved my life,” he said.

Russell is an ambassador for Brain Tumour Research to help raise awareness.

The actor said he did not mind playing a cannibal in Protein, but admitted some scenes could be difficult to watch.

“I drink a lot of what appear to be protein shakes in the movie. But for the viewer it looks like I’m drinking these flesh drinks,” he said.

“I remember finishing one take, looking across and two members of the crew had their backs to me and were retching over a bucket which was quite amusing. But actually it was just watermelon, porridge, almond milk, it was delicious, I really enjoyed it.”

He continued: “I ate raw beef. I would fry a steak and eat that. So it looks horrible because the audience thinks I’m eating a bloke, but for me it was fine. I did really enjoy the cannibal stuff.”

Protein is being shown at selected cinemas across Wales first, before being rolled out across the UK next week.